My name is Dave Drago and thank you so much for visiting the 1809 Studios website. My recording career began in 2002. With my studio partner Jake Rodenhouse, we opened Hopewell Recording Studio in an old beat up Victorian house on Main Street in Canandaigua, NY. We charged next to nothing because we were hungry to learn and make records for our community. After 2 very successful years, Jake and I decided that we wanted to do some exploring outside of upstate NY.

I moved to Denver to pursue 2 undergrad degrees in business while operating a mobile recording business. I lived in Colorado for 5 years enjoying my life hiking and playing in the mountains.

After Denver, I moved to Los Angeles. For the next 3 years I was able to work on some great records but felt like I wanted more freedom in my career. My dream was to make records that held up to the quality of the ones I was working on in major LA studios without having to charge a rate that excluded most musicians.

In 2012 my wife and I decided to move back to upstate NY. We bought an old tavern and performed the daunting studio specific renovations to the 1800 sqft first floor ourselves. All while nesting into our home on the second floor. After a year of gutting and rebuilding, 1809 Studios was born. I am now able to fulfill my vision; offer musicians the quality of top tier studios with a relaxed personal experience for a reasonable price.

Aside from my time in the recording industry, I was also the manager of the Boston based band, Tallahassee starting in 2009. I have always been the kind of person who wants to know more. Working with Tallahassee has offered me the opportunity to perform all the day-to-day tasks of a touring band. I have an understanding of the ways to work an album after it has been recorded. This facet of my career inevitably brings added value to all 1809 Studios clients. We all benefit when your record gets to more listeners and I am more than happy to help anyone in need of consult.